Faith is Spelled RISK
by CherrySoda99
Summary: Sometimes you have to take risks in order to find true love. Sometimes you have to have faith in order to take risks. This story follows the continuing story of the Greasers ,while they deal with love, death, marriage, children, and life. Please R
1. The Search

**Faith is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 1**

**The Search**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Outsiders (although I wish I could own Sodapop if you know what I'm saying.) The only character I own is Alyssa, which is my character. All others are the property of S.E Hinton.**

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I woke up to the sun shining down on my face, and I sat up groggily. I covered my face to block the bright rays. I heard rattling out in the kitchen, and I figured it was either Darry or Sodapop making breakfast. 

I figured it was most likely Darry though, because Soda's been leaving the house early all the time. No one really knows why, not even Steve, and he's Soda's best buddy. We just all figure he's going to work or something, but I highly doubt that. See, I know my brother, and he aint the kind of person that gets to a place, especially work, any earlier than he has to. That's just the way he is. He always manages to wait till the last minute, or until Darry has to shove him out the door (quite literally sometimes).

Darry's more practical. He'll make sure he has all the things he needs for the next morning, laid out and ready the night before. I guess that's why all us Greasers kinda call Darry our unofficial leader. As much as I love Sodapop, I'm not too sure how we would survive with him guiding us. Out of our five gang members, Darry's everyone's first choice. Of course, Two Bit would probably choose himself, cause that's

just he way he is. I'm not so sure about Steve. I don't know much about him. He's always been kind of a mystery to all of us, well, me at least. Soda knows all about them, cause Steve's his best buddy, but other than Soda, Steve kinda keeps to himself.

Ever since we lost Johnny and Dally, our gang's been kinda solemn. I mean, Two Bit will still mess around, and Soda and Steve are always grinning, but it's still different. Like a part of us is missing or something. It just aint the same without Johnny around. Heck, I even miss Dally too.

I rolled out of bed and when I went into the kitchen I discovered that it was, indeed, Darry making breakfast, and that Soda was no where in sight.

"Where's Soda?" I asked, sitting down at the table.

Darry sat a plate of bacon and eggs down in front of me. "He ran off again this morning. I didn't get a chance to ask him where he was going, but he probably wouldn't have told me anyway."

I ate my breakfast in silence, and Darry went to take a shower. I remembered a time not too long ago that me and Darry couldn't have talked like that without some kind of argument breaking out. We can talk better now. We've both matured a bit I guess, and now Soda's not stuck in the middle all the time, which I'm sure he appreciates.

I also remembered another time, ok, so it was about the same time, that Soda was not his usual happy-go-lucky self. You see, his girlfriend Sandy, she ran off to Florida to live with her grandparents. And get this, she was also pregnant, but the catch was, it wasn't with Soda's baby.

Soda had been devastated, and he had been gloomy for weeks, but I think that he's eventually gotten over it, cause he sure don't seem depressed anymore. He hasn't found himself a new woman yet though, which surprises me, cause down at the DX where he works; he's always getting swarmed by a whole bunch of pretty girls. Not just Greasers either, Socs too.

I keep thinking that Soda's hiding something from all of us, even Steve, cause he's been acting mysterious for the last couple of weeks. Smiling a bit more than usual. But, Soda aint that good at keeping secrets, so I figure we'll all find out eventually.

I finished breakfast, and took my plate over to the sink to wash it.

I heard a rap on the front door.

"Come in". I called.

I heard the door open, and soon heard Two Bit and Steve's voices. Then I saw them walk into the kitchen.

"Hey Ponyboy." Steve said. "Where's Soda and Superman?"

Steve's always calling Darry names cause he's always showing off his muscles, but he just never calls him names to his face. He made the mistake of doing that once, and he's learned never to do it again.

"Soda ran off again, and Darry's taking a shower." I said, finishing up the dishes.

"Glory, but that boy is weird!" Two Bit said, pulling a piece of bacon off the frying pan, and shoving it into his mouth. Sometimes I swear he thinks he lives here, cause he's always eating our food.

Steve went into the living room, and I heard him turn the TV on. I think that sometimes he thinks that he lives here too. All these people are always eating our food, watching our TV, even wearing our clothes. It's true, one time, Steve spilled grease on one of his best shirts, and had to borrow one of Darry's, cause Soda's didn't fit him. Steve is skinny, but he's a bit more muscular and broad than Soda.

"Hey Two Bit. Come watch Mickey Mouse." Steve called.

We all know that Two Bit is obsessed with Mickey Mouse. He'd watch it 24/7 if you let him. Maybe it's cause he's really lazy and doesn't do anything else. Of course, we don't let him watch it all day, cause it's our cable bill he's runnin up.

I went in and sat down too. Even I can't resist watching a few cartoons on a Saturday morning. Boy, I have never seen a person stare at something more intently than Two Bit was doing right then. I bet a UFO could've crashed into my roof, and he wouldn't have moved an inch.

Darry came out in the living room then. He stopped when he saw Two Bit and Steve sitting there.

"Are they back again? Do you guys ever go home? Don't you have your own houses?" He asked, seemingly annoyed, even though I caught a hint of a grin on his face. I know he liked Two Bit and Steve, no matter how much he complains about them.

We all love each other in some way, but we still get on each other's nerves occasionally, even Soda. You would think that Soda couldn't annoy anyone, cause all the guys like him, and all the girls drool over him. But, trust me, when you're his brother, and you've lived with him for your whole life, you get to know the little quirks that he does, that tick you off.

I laughed, and Steve playfully punched Darry's arm.

Darry went over to the front door, and put on his boots to go to work. That's the ting about Darry, he's prompt, and organized. I mean, I can be prompt and organized when I want to be, but Darry actually enjoys being that way. Me, I can't stand it, and only do it if someone tells me to.

Steve usually gets a free ride to work everyday, cause he'll come here, and ride to work with Soda and Darry, since they're going to the same place. This morning was no different, and soon as he saw Darry getting ready, he started to get up and get ready too.

"Pony, you keep an eye on this one." He pointed to Two Bit.

Two Bit usually says he'll baby-sit me, but it's usually me doing the babysitting.

Steve walked over to Darry.

"I'm gonna go with you again. I'm gonna go down to the DX and see if I can't round up Soda while I'm there."

Darry and Steve left, and me and Two Bit were alone. We watched TV for awhile longer, and finally, I got bored, and started to get restless. That's the thing about me, I can sit still fine, but after a long time of doing the same thing, I'll start to get bored. I sat up and told Two Bit that if I didn't get out of the house to do something else for awhile, that I would soon go crazy.

Two Bit was reluctant to leave Mickey, but I soon persuaded him to get up and go somewhere with me. Actually, I had to bribe him with chocolate cake, but it got him up.

I decided that I wanted to go see if I could figure out the mystery behind Sodapop. There had to be some explanation to why he was always leaving the house early, and by gosh, I was going to find out what that reason was, if it killed me. Even if I had to carry Two Bit on my shoulders and feed him for a month, I was going to find out, and he was coming with me.

Turns out, I didn't have to carry, after he heard what my plans were, he actually came voluntarily. He was obviously as curious to find out what Soda was up to as I was. He wanted to take his car, cause he didn't want to have to walk, but I talked him out of it. Besides, the DX was only a couple of blocks away ,and I needed the exercise, and so did he.

Last year, you wouldn't have caught any of us Greasers dead walking around town in groups of less than three. That's cause we was always scared that the Socs were gonna come in their Mustangs and Corvairs, and jump us.

That's the thing about our neighbourhood, if you're a Greaser, than you're the poor kid, without the money, and a good family. If you're a Soc, then you're the lucky one at the top with all the breaks. That was the way that Randy, the Soc, had described it to me one time. The Socs and the Greasers haven't had too much trouble with each other lately. We aren't exactly friendly, but we don't jump each other every chance we get. We had it out in the lot about a year ago, the same night that Johnny and Dally died, and now we kind of steer clear of each other. We stay off their turf, and they keep away from ours. At least for now. I still talk to Randy a little, when he's not with his friends. If I'm walking down the road, and he drives by in his car alone, he'll occasionally beep the horn, and wave out the window.

It's amazing to think that it's been almost a year since Johnny killed that Soc in the park, and the whole mess started. I guess it really started though, that night at the movie, when me and Johnny got real close to Cherry Valence and her friend Marcia, who happened to be Bob and Randy's girlfriends. They had been drunk that night and hadn't been too pleased about us trying to "pick up their women", so that's why they came after Johnny and me, and that's when they had tried to drown me, and that's when Johnny stabbed Bob.

It's still weird to think that a year has almost gone by since all that happened. I mean, everyone is almost one year older now. I'm almost 15, and fun loving, happy-go-lucky, always grinning, never gonna grow up Soda, is going to be 18 in a few weeks.

He will be 18 soon too, I should probably start thinking about something to get special for him.

For Darry's birthday last year, I bought him about 4 or 5 muscle shirts, the kind that have no sleeves. I think it was a good choice on my part, cause Soda was sitting on the couch the whole time laughing his head off, and even Darry was trying hard not to grin.

I decided that I needed a plan for uncovering the mystery of Sodapop. I needed an excuse to walk down to the DX, with Two Bit, to look for Soda. Then, I found it. Soda had left his shoes lying in the middle of the floor. The only reason I saw them was cause I almost tripped over them. I swear that Soda would forget his head sometimes if it wasn't attached somehow. I picked up those shoes, and told Two Bit that I had found my diversion.

We started walking down to the DX and once we got there, I only saw Steve standing out front, which was odd, cause Soda is usually outside on the pumps, cause he attracts all the female costumers.

I don't usually get jealous of Soda for being so handsome, but sometimes it's hard living in the shadows. Being in between muscle man and movie star. If I ever meet any girls that I like, and I tell them about Soda, they'll always say that they think he's a doll. That's what Cherry and Marcia had said the night we met them. It really didn't bother me all that much though, cause at that point, I didn't like Cherry at all. But after the night was over, if she would've said that, I would've been really jealous.

I walked over to Steve. " Hey, you seen Soda since you been here?" I asked him.

"Yeah, he was here when I got here. He went inside awhile ago, but I haven't seen him since, so I have no idea what he's doing." Steve said.

Soda was always a really secretive person, but the only problem with that, was that he wasn't that good at keeping secrets, not even his.

Steve wiped the grease off his hands and walked over to us.

"Hey, I'll let you guys in on something. We got us a new person working here. Just started last week. I'll tell ya, she's a looker. I think that your brother's taken a bit of a liking to her."

I had to replay that over in mind, cause I coulda sworn that Steve had said it was a she.

"You say it was a her? As in a girl?" I asked, confused.

"Yea. Can't say I blame Soda for liking her either. She ain't no Soc, that's for sure. She knows her way around cars, and she ain't afraid to get her hands dirty. I think that's why Soda is coming early all the time now. He's got a bit of a thing for her."

I should have known. Soda has been single for awhile now, and I just knew he couldn't resist the ladies, especially the pretty ones. I mean, being a 17 year old, single, handsome guy like Soda, is really hard to resist, for any girl. He's always telling me that the best way to get a girl, is to keep very hands off, of course, he also says that there ain't no harm in looking. Which is good I guess, cause he looks a lot.

"You say he was inside?" I asked.

"Yea, he might be at the cash, but we all know how he is with numbers, so he's probably back in the storeroom. Look for the bathrooms, but keep going all the way back. The sign's on the door." He said.

Two Bit stayed outside with Steve, while I went to look for Soda.

The DX ain't that big, and finding your way around should be real simple. But I'll tell ya, they got that store packed with so much stuff, that it took me almost 5 minutes, just to find the right aisle that would take me to the bathroom.

Still holding Soda's shoes, I found the back door, that had 'Storeroom' written on it. I hesitated, and wondered if I should knock or not. But then I wondered what the point of that would be? What could possibly be going on in a storeroom, that would make someone have to knock. I took a deep breath, and pushed open the heavy door.

As soon as I had one good look inside, I closed that door right quick, and turned around. Maybe I should've knocked, cause when I looked in, I had seen a guy and a girl in there kissing, and now my face was burning and I was right embarrassed cause not only had I seen and disturbed them, I had embarrassed myself real good. I decided that I would look somewhere else for Soda.

But then, I stopped myself, and retraced those last minutes. Something was telling me that I had been in the right place, and that guy had looked right familiar, even though I hadn't seen his face. I didn't recognize the girl at all, but the more I thought about it, the more my mind put together the pieces. All of what Steve had said, had finally sunk in and was beginning to make sense. Soda was apparently in the storeroom. There was a new girl working there, who I had never seen before. Soda had a crush on her. He kept coming to work early, and he was acting secretive. He was also inside, and he was never inside. He was also single. The more I thought about all that, the more that guy took shape, and the more he took shape, the more he looked an awful lot like Soda!

Even though it worked, I couldn't picture my brother doing any thing like that. He did have the same hair though, and the same physique. The last thing I noticed though, that convinced me the most, was that he wasn't wearing shoes.

After I finally came to the realization that it was, indeed my brother, I almost dropped the shoes I was carrying. I almost started laughing too, cause I realized that I had just caught my brother, making out with a girl, when he was supposed to be working.

I thought about leaving them alone, but then I thought that this was way too much fun to be had.

I creaked open the door again. They were still there, and I took another look. It was Soda alright. I concealed my laughter, and counted to three slowly in my head, and then, ever so carefully, I jumped up and yelled "Gotcha!"

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**That's all for now. Please R&R!**

**(I probably won't be updating this one for awhile, but I might sometime.)**

**Jess**


	2. Questions and Answers

**Faith is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 2**

**Questions and Answers**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters in The Outsiders. Just Alyssa.**

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As soon as I yelled, Soda and the girl jumped at least a foot in the air. That did it for me. I started laughing so hard I had to sit down on the floor. I was now rolling around, tears streaming out of my eyes, trying to get a breath in, because it was so funny.

I got a good look at Soda's face. He didn't look mad, but he didn't exactly look impressed either. Although, as I looked at the girl, I could see that she was trying really hard not to laugh, which made me laugh harder. I looked into her eyes, and she looked so familiar. I couldn't figure out where I'd seen her before, but I knew I had.

"Pony! What in the world are you trying to do! Give me a heart attack!" Soda said, staring at me on the floor.

I tried to answer, but I couldn't, because I was laughing so hard.

By this time, Two Bit and Steve were beside me trying to figure out what all the noise was about, and why I was on the floor laughing like a hyena.

"What in the world is the matter with you? You sound like a banshee!" Steve said.

The girl stepped forward, and knelt down beside me.

"This must be Ponyboy. I hardly recognized you, you've grown up so much since I last saw you." She said.

I was very confused. She obviously knew me, but I had no idea who she was. I felt bad, but I seriously didn't know who she was.

Soda came over and pulled me up off my feet.

"Would you care to explain why you're here?" He said.

I remember suddenly, that I had brought his shoes with me. I must have dropped them when I fell over. I looked around me to see if I could find them. I saw them laying about 2 feet away from me. I picked them up.

"Um…you forgot your shoes, so I thought me and Two Bit would bring them to you." I said.

Soda looked over at Two Bit with a very suspicious look on his face. Two Bit put his hands in the air as if to say he had nothing to do with it.

"I'd hate to think that you had anything to do with this, would you T.B?" He said.

Two Bit shook his head. "I had no idea what he was planning. I also had no idea what I'd find down here." He said, and I knew he just said that to make himself look good. He was making me look horrible.

Soda looked back at me. "You mean to tell me, that you came all the way down here, to bring me a pair of shoes, even though I've forgotten them a lot of times before, and you never bothered to bring them down. That's the only reason you're here?" He said, and I could tell he didn't believe me.

I gulped. I couldn't lie to Soda. I just couldn't. Soda's the one person that can see through me like I was transparent. Besides, I loved him too much to lie to him.

"No, that's not the only reason I'm here. I came down here because I wanted to know what you've been doing. I wanted to see why you're being so secretive, and leaving the house all early and everything. I don't know whether it's creeping me out, or if it's driving me crazy. But, I wanted to know anyway."

There was a silence for a few seconds, and finally, Soda sighed, and pulled the girl out in front of them.

"This is my girlfriend, guys. Her name is Alyssa." He said.

Something inside me clicked on. Alyssa. That sounded way too familiar. Steve answered my curiosity, however.

"Wait a minute. Not that Alyssa!" He said, staring at her in disbelief.

Soda nodded. "Remember Alyssa Lowe, Steve?" He asked.

Steve whistled, and took a really good look at her eyes.

"No way! It can't be! We thought you disappeared off the face of the earth! What in the world are you doing back?" He asked

Now, it finally sunk in. All of it. I knew exactly who this girl was now. This was Alyssa Lowe. Soda and Alyssa had more of a history together, than I think, anyone else I knew of. They had met in kindergarten, when they were in the same class. They had been best friends all up through grade school, and even into junior high. The funny part was, that they had also been "dating" since the second grade, cause they both thought it would be funny. Neither of them knew what that meant, until they got to grade seven. They tried dating seriously for a year, but found that they couldn't, so Alyssa broke up with him. Soda went and dated Sandy, and Alyssa dated some guy named Rob. I hadn't heard from her for ever, and now she was back, and dating Soda again.

"Well, when I broke up with Rob, I decided that I should probably get a job, because after I moved out of my dad's house, I moved in with him. I dropped out of school, because I Rob thought I didn't need it, and at that point, I was stupid enough to believe him. But, finally, I realized that I couldn't be with him, so I broke up with him, and moved in with my sister." She said.

There was a silence for a few minutes, and I guess Soda was waiting for someone to say something, but no one did.

Finally, Alyssa spoke up. "Well, I guess that we're all reacquainted, I think it's time we got back to work, or else the boss will fire all of us."

Steve opened the door. "Right, see ya'll later." He said, and went back out to the pumps.

"Soda, can you help me get some of those heavy boxes down?" Alyssa asked.

A small grin came over Soda's face, but he tried to conceal it. I knew why. He knew that helping her get boxes down, meant more sucking face for him. That was my cue to leave, so I grabbed Two Bit and headed out the door.

Me and Two Bit walked in silence for most of the way home. When we got to the end of my street, we started talking.

"Did you know that was Alyssa, T.B?" I asked.

Two Bit shook his head. "Not really. I hadn't seen her for a long time, but there's something about her eyes that made her seem real familiar to me. Shoot, she got pretty. I mean, she was always pretty, even in the first grade. I remember being over at your place with Darry, and Soda brought her home to play. I was three years older than her, but even then, I thought she was cute. But now, man, I just wish I had gotten there first! Soda's one lucky son of a monkey. She's a lot better than the blondes I usually pick up, even Kathy." Two Bit said, referring to his old girlfriend.

I nodded. She was pretty, very pretty. I don't remember a lot about her, because I was always two years younger than them. When they had broke up, Soda had been 13, so that had made me 11. I didn't know much about dating at that point, so it hadn't really registered. But, as I thought about the new developments, my mind wandered to another girl I knew. Cherry Valence. I hadn't talked to her for a long time, but that didn't mean that I didn't want to. I saw her occasionally at school, but that was about it. Other than the occasional "hi" in the hallway, you wouldn't have known she existed.

I liked Cherry. Cherry had been the only girl that I could talk to about sunsets and feelings and crap like that. I could talk to her about the problems me and Darry used to have, or the way I felt when my parents died. I never saw her at all now, so I had no one to talk to, except Soda, and I figured that those conversations might become a little limited.

Soda had once told me that I'd grow out of my girl hating stage, and at the time, I had said he was nuts. But, now I was starting to see where he was coming from. I had started seriously noticing girls about a year ago. Before that, I had no time. But now, I would see them talking to Soda at the DX, and I would get almost jealous, because I wanted that attention. I was moving on to a new chapter in my life, and if nothing else, I knew that I wanted Cherry to be in it.

I couldn't tell that to anyone else, because they'd all think I'm crazy, except for maybe Soda. All the rest would say that I shouldn't date a Soc. Especially Darry. He had dated one once, and she had broken his heart. Not to mention, her dad almost broke his jaw when he found out.

Me and Two Bit walked into the house, and as soon as I stepped inside, I thought I would curl up and die. I had no idea how messy the house had been when I left, and looking at it now, it looked like a tornado had struck it. Funny how it's never messy until T.B or Steve show up.

"Two Bit, we've got to get this place cleaned up before Darry gets home, or he'll have my head on a platter!" I said, scrambling around to pick up clothes and books that were scattered along the floor.

Two Bit looked up at the clock. "Shoot kid, it's not even lunch time, it only 11:30 in the morning. Darry don't get home till four. We've got plenty of time. No need to give yourself an ulcer or anything."

I shoot him a look. "Well, at the rate you clean, it's gonna take us near that long to do it, so lets go!" I said.

Two Bit sighed, and sat down on the couch, and picked up the four things that were sitting around it. He put them, very messily, where they belonged, and then went back to the couch and turned on the TV.

"I'm done!" He called to me.

I groaned, and sensing he'd be no more help to me than a pile of rocks, I went back to work.

I finally got everything done right around three, which gave me time to grab a small bite to eat before Darry got home. As soon as he walked in the door with Soda, he took a look around, than shot me a small smile.

"Thanks for cleaning the house up Pony. It looks good." He said.

Two Bit cocked an eyebrow. "Hey, how come you didn't thank me? I cleaned all day!" he said.

Darry punched his arm. "Cause I know the only thing you helped clean out was my fridge." He said.

Soda laughed, and Two Bit had to as well, as he offered Darry a piece of chocolate cake.

Two Bit left then, and we all sat down to supper. Darry cooked tonight, so everything was normal. As we sat down, Darry started up a conversation.

"So, what all went on today, guys?" He said.

I opened my mouth to answer, but Soda kicked me under the table, as if to tell me not to mention Alyssa. So I didn't.

"Two Bit and me went down to the DX to visit Soda and Steve for a bit, then we came back a cleaned. Other than that, nothing overly exciting happened." I said.

That was the honest truth. I had just left Alyssa out of it. Darry obviously didn't suspect anything, because he went right on eating, and carrying on a completely different conversation with Soda.

That night, after me and Soda went to bed, I rolled over to talk to him.

"Hey Soda, what went through your mind when you saw Alyssa again?" I asked.

Soda rolled over to face me. "Well, I hadn't seen her in such a long time, so I'm amazed that I even recognized her. But, I did. As soon as I looked into her eyes, I knew it was her, and as soon as she walked over to me, and we stared at each other. I knew, right then, that I was going to fall back in love with her. I guess I never really stopped. I always loved her, but after she broke up with me, I never thought I'd love again. When I found Sandy, I thought that she was the one. But, I guess I was wrong. I don't know how I ever survived without Alyssa."

"Do you like her a lot?" I asked, not realizing that the question seemed to have answered itself. I just wanted to know.

"Yeah, I liked her a whole lot Pony." Soda said, rolling back over and yawning.

"Do you think she's pretty?" I asked.

I could hear Soda's sigh from the other side of the bed. "Pony, can't you ask me this in the morning? I'm really tired." He said.

"Ok, sorry." I said, and closed my eyes.

There was a silence for about a minute, then I heard Soda's voice.

"Pony?" He asked.

"I thought you were tired." I said, smiling.

"Alyssa's the most amazingly, beautiful girl I have ever seen." Soda said.

"I do believe that you are falling in love with that girl already, Sodapop." I said.

"Maybe I am, Pony. Maybe I am." Soda said.

I closed my eyes, and I heard Soda's breathing become regular, and he was asleep. I drifted off, and the last thing I remember thinking about was Cherry Valence. Then I thought about how nice it must feel to be in love.

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**There's chapter two! I finally updated. Please R&R!**

**Jess**


	3. Running Against the Clock

**Faith is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 3**

**Running Against the Clock**

**Disclaimer: I only own Alyssa. No one else. All else are property of S.E Hinton.**

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When I woke up the next morning, Soda was no longer beside me. I knew he must have gone early to work again that morning. Only, I knew, it wasn't because he was excited to go to work.

I went out to get breakfast again. This time it was toast. I sat down, and pretty soon, Darry came out and sat down with me.

It was odd, because Darry hardly ever eats breakfast with us. He always rushes around in order to get himself, and Soda to work on time. Then, he fusses about me, to make sure I'm ready for school, and all my books and ready, and my lunch is made.

Since it's summer, he don't got to worry about me at the moment, so I figure he's taking it a bit easier.

"Pony, you don't happen to know where Soda is this morning? He was gone even before I got up." Darry said.

I slid down in my seat. The toast suddenly tasted dry in my mouth. I had no idea what I should say. I didn't want to lie to Darry, but I didn't want to betray Soda. So, I decided to compromise. I would tell Darry where he was, just not the reason he was there.

"I reckon he's down at the DX or something." I said, trying not to make eye contact.

Darry nodded. "I figured as much. I was planning on dropping in on him. I haven't been down there for a while, so I may as well. As long as you're sure he's down there."

Drop in on him? Oh no. My stomach did a flip-flop. If Soda was going to such lengths not to let Darry find out about Alyssa, then obviously there was a good reason.

I said the only thing I could think of that wouldn't make me look suspicious.

"What time are you planning on dropping by? Cause Soda usually takes a lunch break around 12:30." I said.

"I'll probably go down around noon. Then, I won't miss him, and I can eat my lunch down there. Thanks for the help, Ponyboy." Darry said, standing up from the table, and headed out the door to go to work.

I finished my breakfast, and started on the dishes. Once I got those done, I looked at the clock. It was 9:30. I still had plenty of time before lunch. I figured I'd have to go down and warn Soda that Darry was coming down, so he could avoid being caught in any compromising situations that I'm sure Darry wouldn't appreciate.

I watched TV for a while, and I guess I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew, the clock on the wall said 10:45.

I called up T.B, because I knew, or at least, I hoped, he'd be up for going down with me.

He didn't answer right away, and I was about to hang up, when I heard a drowsy voice on the other end. I figured I must have woken him up. Oh well, he sleeps too much anyway.

Whatcha want?" I heard him say. I wondered if he always answered the phone like that. That might turn some people off.

I smiled. "Wondered if you wanted to go down to visit Soda with me? Sounds like you got nothing better to do."

I heard Two Bit groan. "Shoot kid. We was just there yesterday. What purpose could that possibly serve?" He asked.

"Because I gotta talk to him." I pleaded with him.

"You planning on scaring him again?" He said, and I heard him laughing.

"No, I just gotta talk to him." I said, getting slightly annoyed.

"Come on Pony, there's a Mickey marathon on today. You ain't gonna drag me away from it, is ya?" He said.

"T.B, there's Mickey marathon's on every Sunday. You miss it today, you can catch it next week. Come on, It's not like you couldn't use the exercise. Come on buddy. You know you want to." I said, sounding pretty pathetic.

"I'll come if you tell me what's so important that you absolutely have to tell him." Two Bit said.

There was hope. What harm could telling him do? He can't remember anything past breakfast.

"I gotta tell him that Darry's coming down to see him at noon. He doesn't want Darry to know about Alyssa, so I gotta warn him. There, are you happy? That's what's so darn important." I said.

I could hear T.B let out another sigh on the other end of the line. I wondered if he thought it was worth his time.

"T.B?" I asked, after not hearing anything.

"I don't know Pony." He said.

"Please, T.B! Please, please!" I begged. I think I sounded like I was turning into a girl, because my voice was growing higher pitched at every word.

I listened for Two Bit's response, and I figured he was seriously thinking about it, if that's even possible for him.

"Well?" I asked. Now I was getting impatient.

"Fine kid, fine. How much time do I have?" He said.

"We got about 35 minutes. Be ready, I'll come pick you up. I'll be there in five." I said.

"Whatever Pony." He said, and hung up the phone.

I really didn't figure he'd be ready in five minutes, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt, and gave him about ten. I used some of this time to clean up anything in the house that was messed up. I thought that if Darry did catch Soda and Alyssa, and he did get upset, he could at least come home to a clean house.

When I left, I walked slowly, taking in the warm summer air as I walked. I got to Two Bit's house, and knocked on the door. I had been a little more than ten minutes, so I figured that he should at least be half ready by now.

Of course, when he opened the door, I couldn't have been more wrong. He was wearing the same shirt he had worn yesterday, and his hair was all messed up, although it was greased. I sighed.

"T.B, didn't you get ready at all?" I said, trying to convey to him my deepest disgust that he had taken so long.

"This is all I need, Ponyboy." He said, stepping out of the house.

I sighed again. "Alright, alright." I said. "Lets go then."

We walked through town and stopped at a corner store so we could pick up some smokes. Darry don't approve of me smoking so much, but he doesn't have to know. I bed he wishes I was like Soda, who only smokes when he wants to look tough, or when something's really bothering him.

When we stepped back outside, we saw Tim Shepard and his outfit standing next to their cars. Tim was leaning on his with a grim expression on his face.

"Hey Pony, T.B!" He called, and waved us over with his arm.

We went over to the car, and Two Bit stuck out his hand.

"How's it going Shepard?" He asked.

"Not bad, not great. You guys hear about Curly?" He asked.

"No." We both answered. I had no idea what was coming. I figured he probably landed himself in jail again. He was almost as bad as Dally when it came to jail. He was one of my good friends, though, so I was curious as to what he was up to.

"He's dead." Were the only words that came out of Tim's mouth.

It took both of us a little time to process the reality of what he had just said. When it finally sunk in, I could feel tears forming in my eyes, and tried desperately to hold them back. Two Bit sensed this, and put his hand on my shoulder to steady me.

I croaked out the only word I could. "How?" I asked.

Tim gave me a really grim look. "He got in a fight with some Soc. He was picking on him, and just fooling around. Didn't know that the Soc was drunk, started beating the crap out of him. Went a little too far. Curly fell backwards and hit his head on a rock. The Soc was too drunk to realize what had happened, so he just left him there. Once the police arrived and got him to the hospital, it was too late. He sustained brain damage and they couldn't save him. Once the Soc came around, and heard what had happened, he apologized for it. Said it was an accident. Got sent to jail for a while. But, it would've been longer if he hadn't confessed."

I could see that Two Bit was getting a bit mad. He never did like Soc's very much, and this made it a lot worse.

"You mean the fuzz believed that it was an accident!" Two Bit screamed. "That wasn't no accident, it couldn't have been! That loser pushed him against a rock, that ain't no accident!" He said.

Tim put his hand up to calm T.B down.

"I know, that's what I thought too, but some other people testified as well, and they're people I know and trust. They said, they thought it was an accident. The Soc may have pushed him, but Curly was antagonizing him. I went to see the Soc in jail. Surprised they let me in. What really got me, is that the guy apologized to me." Tim said

"I…I'm really sorry." I said, which was really the only thing I could think of at the moment to say that was supportive and wouldn't cause me to break down right there and then.

Tim did something unexpected then. He leaned over and put his hand on my shoulder.

"Me too kid, me too." He said.

At that moment, I happened to glance down at my watch. Holy crap! It was 11:55! I ad five minutes to get down to the DX and warn Soda to stop with the mouth to mouth before Darry showed up!

"Oh man, T.B, we gotta go! We got five minutes to get down there before Darry! Sorry Tim! See you later!"

I grabbed Two Bit by the arm, and ran as fast as I could with him, even though he complained every step of the way.

We ran for what seemed like a mile, but it was really only a few blocks. Every time I heard a vehicle, I always thought it was Darry's pickup coming behind us, but it never was.

I think we reached the DX in record time, but when I looked at my watch again, it said 11:58. I had two minutes.

I saw Steve in his same spot.

"Soda?" I called at him, running past.

He pointed to the interior of the station.

"Same place no doubt." He said, going back to work.

Two Bit laughed, but I didn't have time to. I left Two Bit with Steve and ran inside, and back to the storeroom. Every minute thinking that Darry could be right behind me.

I ran to the door, and as soon as I reached it, I realized that I should've told Steve not to tell Darry where we were, but I didn't have time to think about it now. It was 11:59, and for all I knew Darry was right behind me at that very moment.

I pushed the heavy door open again, and as soon as I stepped inside, I saw Soda and Alyssa in the exact same position that they had been in yesterday.

I was about ready to yell for them to stop, but before I could get it out, an all too familiar voice did it for me.

"Would someone please like to explain what in the world is going on here?"

Soda jumped again, and him and Alyssa turned around to look.

I saw Soda's face go completely white, and when I turned around, I knew why.

Standing right behind me, red faced, was Darry.

* * *

**I'm going to start updating this story more. Just so you all know, this story goes hand in hand with my other one, "Inside the Outsiders". Go read that one too, and you'll understand the whole Soda/Alyssa situation. Please R&R!**

**Jess**


	4. Conversation and Confession

**Faith is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 4**

**Conversation and Confession**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any original characters. Just Alyssa.**

* * *

Soda's face was so white, that he could have been mistaken as wearing a Halloween costume. Both of their faces had the color drained out of it, and they were standing the same position I had found them in yesterday. Unfortunately, the atmosphere wasn't quite the same.

Soda looked back and forth from Darry to Alyssa. Then, from Darry to me. I hoped that he didn't think I dragged Darry down here. Alyssa was staring nervously at Darry, as if she wasn't sure if he was dangerous or not, and she was holding onto Soda for dear life. T.B and Steve had come in by this time, and they were quieter that I think I've ever heard them.

Soda broke the silence. "Darry, listen…this isn't what you think…" He started, and with each word, he sounded like he was going to cry at any moment.

Darry's face was redder than I had ever seen it before. I was almost afraid to be standing there beside him, in fear he'd lash out. He obviously didn't care what Soda had to say.

"Soda, what are you doing? I didn't let you drop out of school to make out with girls all day. You're supposed to be working." He said, coldly.

I really wished he hadn't brought the whole dropping out of school thing up. It may not have been horrible to Soda, but it was a touchy subject with me, and hearing it being said so lightly, bothered me, even if it was Darry saying it.

"I wasn't…I just…you don't understand…" Soda was trying to get out. His face getting redder and more desperate by the minute. He was begging for Darry to understand, but he just couldn't.

I couldn't bare seeing my brother like this. I had to step in.

"Darry, don't get mad at him man, he ain't done nothing wrong." I said.

Darry turned on me then. "Pony, stay out of this. It don't concern you, just shut up!" He said. Boy, I knew he must be mad then. He's been making a habit of trying not to tell anyone to shut up, especially not me or Soda. I backed off.

Soda spoke up. "Hey, Darry, don't yell at him, this is between us." He said, regaining some of the courage in his voice, but when Darry looked back at him, he cowered back again.

Steve and T.B didn't say a word. Alyssa didn't either, but she strengthened her grip on Soda's hand. She looked at me then.

"Pony, why don't you take Steve and Two Bit outside for a while, so we can work this out?" She suggested. Leave it to Alyssa to be the peacemaker. She had always been that way. She didn't like conflict, and you could tell.

I nodded and Steve and T.B followed me outside the room. I closed the heavy door behind me, and Steve out his ear to it to see if he could hear anything. I put mine up to it as well, and Two Bit followed suit. We couldn't hear anything, so Steve and Two Bit finally gave up.

I stayed though, and every so often, one of their voices got high enough, that I could make out some of what they were saying.

Darry said something about keeping secrets from him, and I heard my name in there somewhere, and wondered how I got into this. Soda would say something back, but from what I could tell, he wasn't mad or anything. I heard a softer, female voice as well, but it was low enough that I couldn't make any of it out.

I kept listening for anything else I could hear, but what I did hear, was someone moving towards the door. The last thing I needed was for Darry to come out and find me eavesdropping, so I backed away from the door, and picked up the nearest magazine.

Alyssa came out, and closed the door behind her.

"How's it going?" I asked.

"They're still talking, but I thought I'd get out of it for a while. This part has nothing to do with me, and I bet I was making Soda uncomfortable."

"What are they talking about?" I asked, trying to quench my curiosity.

She moved the hair out of her eyes. "Well, I wasn't really sure, but I heard something about someone named Sandy. And they were just talking about how Soda and you were keeping secrets from him, and then Soda told Darry that he shouldn't have to tell him everything. I didn't think I needed to hear anything other than that, so I decided to leave."

"Are you alright?" I asked, because I could tell she was upset. Who wouldn't be?

She flashed me a smile. "Yea, I'm fine Pony. Thanks. Oh, if Soda comes looking for me, I'll be out on the pumps with Steve, ok?"

I nodded, and she walked past me. Then, she stopped, and turned back.

"Just for the record, next time to grab a magazine to cover up for listening in, you might want to look at the cover first." She said, and walked away smiling.

I looked down at the book in my hand. It had to be a parenting magazine didn't it?

I wondered if Alyssa knew we didn't always act like that at home? Lately, we had been getting along real good, Darry and I. We used to fight like dogs, but ever since the while thing that happened last year, we had decided to stop fighting, because it was stupid. Besides, Soda didn't like it much anyway. That was one of the main reasons we had stopped. We always did things for Soda.

At that point, Darry came out, and slammed the door behind him. He didn't look as mad as he had before, but still, he didn't look exactly look pleasant.

"Darry…" I started to say. But he put his hand up to stop me.

"Not now Pony, ok? Look kid, I'm sorry I yelled at you, but now is not the right time, ok? I really have to go." He said, and walked swiftly out of the store.

I waited until he was completely gone, and then I went back in to look for Soda, to see if he was ok.

I saw him, sitting on one of the packages in the back room. His back was to me, but his shoulders were heaving and his breathing was irregular.

"Soda, are you ok?" I asked.

He looked slightly up at me, and I could see that his eyes were red. It was weird, because I very rarely see my brother cry. He tries not to, even though he doesn't hide his emotions very well. He cried when mom and dad died, when they took away his horse, and when Sandy left him. I'll bet he cried when I ran away, and when Dally and Johnny died. But all the same, it was weird seeing my brother crying, and I felt liked crying myself.

"I'm ok Pony, can you get Alyssa for me please?" He asked.

"Yeah sure. She's just outside with Steve. I'll go get her for you. Do you want anything else?" I asked, trying to be as supportive as I could.

He shook his head. "No, that's fine. Thanks Pony."

I walked out to the pumps and saw Steve and Alyssa working on a car. Boy, you wouldn't know it, but Alyssa really is a grease monkey. She's great with cars, and she's not afraid to show her tomboy side. I think that's part of the reason Soda's so attracted to her. It might also have something to do with the fact that she's so darn sweet and pretty.

"Hey, Alyssa. Soda wants you in the back." I said.

She dropped the cloth she was using, and walked past me. She was quiet, even more so than usual. She didn't look like she was crying, but she looked on the verge of it.

"Alyssa, I think he may be crying." I said, as softly as I could so Steve couldn't hear.

As she walked past me, she flashed me a smile, as best she could, and said "Thanks Pony."

After she went in, Steve waved me over to the car he was working on.

"Pony, come here." He called, in the loudest whisper I had ever heard.

I walked over to the car, and sat down on a chair that was beside it.

"So, uh, what's the scoop, Pony? I mean, what are they talking about? Has Darry killed them yet?" He asked.

"Well, as far as I know, they're still both breathing. Um…they were talking about stuff, but I'm not sure what's going on now. I was going to go check." I said.

Steve nodded. I walked back into the store and went back to the room. I quietly creaked open the door as quietly as I could, and peered through the tiny crack I had made.

I saw Alyssa walking over to where Soda was, and I was quiet enough to hear their conversation.

"Soda, are you ok?" She asked, in her sweet voice.

Soda only nodded, and pulled her over to him.

"Come on baby, it's gonna be ok, you know Darry's bark is worse than his bite. This will all blow over in a couple days." She said, laying her head on his shoulder.

Soda still didn't answer, and he wrapped his arms around her in a hug. Then, he put his head down into her shoulder and started crying hard.

"Oh, don't cry baby, you're gonna make me cry." She said, half laughing.

Soda sat up, and put both his hands on her cheeks.

"I'm sorry, babe. But, I just hate it when he's mad at me." Soda said.

"I told you, Darry's bark is worse than his bite. I'll bet he'll forget all about this tomorrow, ok? Cheer up, you're much cuter when you smile." She said.

Soda flashed her one of his famous grins, and then he leaned over to kiss her.

I closed the door really fast, because I really didn't want to see that.

I went back outside to report my findings to Steve. I didn't really want to, but since I told him I would, it was better if I kept my promise.

Steve saw my come out, and immediately waved me back over.

"So? What's up?" He asked, putting down the wrench.

"Well, they're in there talking, and Soda's kind of upset, but Alyssa's trying to make them feel better. I stopped looking when they started the mouth to mouth again. Jeeze, you'd think that they were choking all the time or something." I said.

Steve laughed. "That, my little friend, is one of the many advantages of having a girlfriend. You'll find out someday." He said.

"I guess so." I said.

I sat back down on the chair. "So, where'd T.B go anyway?" I asked.

"He went to either find women, or find beer. Or maybe both. Here, hold this for me will ya?" He said, passing me a tire he had just taken off.

It was so heavy, I almost fell over from the weight. I figured out pretty quick that if I ever wanted to work in a gas station, I'd have to get myself in shape. I handed the tire back to Steve, and started drawing in the dirt on the ground.

I saw Soda and Alyssa come out of the store, holding hands. Sheesh, it just proved that they had super glue complex. I don't think they ever let go of each other.

I looked at my watch again; it was almost 1:00. This could prove to be a very long day. I decided to walk home alone, just because I didn't want to hang around with the Three Musketeers of the DX.

The walk home was long, but enjoyable. No Two Bit to constantly talk, and not having to worry about the Socs made it pleasantly quiet.

When I got to the house, I was pleased to find it clean. I guess I should start picking T.B up from his house more often.

As usual, I sat down in front of the TV to kill some time, and turned on some random cartoon, and soon, Darry was home with Soda. They weren't exactly speaking, but they weren't yelling, and they didn't look mad anymore.

Supper was quiet, though. No one talked much, and nothing really strange happened. Of course, that probably partially has to do with the fact that Soda didn't cook dinner. I did. I made my favorite: chicken sandwiches. They were also the easiest to make.

When I went to bed that night, Soda rolled over so his back was to me, and I couldn't see his face.

"Soda, are you sure you're alright?" I asked, trying to sit up far enough to see the expression on his face.

Soda didn't answer, he didn't move either.

The air from outside was still cool, even for summer. When the sun went down, the warmth went with it. There was no school anymore, and sometimes it was hard to go to sleep, because the air was warm and sticky. But not tonight. I was almost cold enough to have to use the warm blanket at the foot of the bed. Even though it was cool, I could still feel the heat from Soda's body.

"Soda?" I asked again.

"What do you want Pony?" He asked, quietly.

"What happened back at the station, with Darry? Did you have to break up with her? Did Darry get really mad? Come on, what happened? It's killing me, Soda!" I said, sitting up fully.

Soda rolled over to face me then, and propped himself up on one arm.

"Wow. Slow don Pony. One thing at a time. No, I didn't have to break up with her, and I don't think that Darry is really that mad. I think he was just more upset that you knew and didn't tell him." Soda said.

"You mean, he's mad at me because I kept your stupid secret and didn't tell him about your girlfriend! Somehow, that doesn't really add up!" I said.

"Hey, it ain't my fault! I was trying to stick up for Alyssa!" He said.

"So, you didn't try to stick up for me! Your own brother! But, you still stick up for your girlfriend!" I said, getting slightly agitated.

"It's not that simple, Pony! I was confused, and mad at the time, and I know that I've known you longer that Alyssa…"

"15 years longer!" I said, almost shouting.

"I know Pony! I'm sorry, ok? Look, it was heat of the moment. You saw how mad Darry was! He was yelling at me, and I didn't know what to do, or how to respond. I was upset that Alyssa had to see Darry mad at me." Soda said, sitting up fully.

"But I thought you were supposed to be my brother? Don't you love me?" I asked. I could feel tears stinging my eyes. This time I didn't try holding them back. I couldn't. I loved Soda. I knew he loved me too, but the realization that I could lose him to Alyssa, as much I liked her, made me sick. Of all the people I didn't want to lose, Soda was the biggest one. He was the only one that understood me, and I couldn't lose him, I just couldn't.

"Pony, what are you talking about? Of course I love you, why wouldn't I? You're my brother!" Soda said.

"Yes, but do you love Alyssa more?" I asked. I needed to know.

"Pony, I love you. You're my little brother. I love Alyssa too. She's my girlfriend, my soul mate, and my best friend. I don't love either one of you any more than the other, just in different ways." Soda said, resting one hand on my shoulder.

"So, you do love her?" I asked, feeling a small smile spreading across my face.

Soda didn't answer, but I could tell he was contemplating what to say to me.

"Pony, do you like Alyssa?" He asked suddenly, out of no where.

"Do I like her? Well, she's nice, but I don't like her." I said, not quite sure what to say.

"No, I mean, do you like her as a person? I mean, if for some reason, in the future, we decided to take the next step, would you be ok with that?" He asked.

"You mean, if you like, got married or something?" I asked.

"Yeah, something like that." Soda replied.

"I don't mind that you're with Alyssa. I just don't want her to take over my place in your heart." I said. I had stopped crying by now, but my nose was still stuffed up.

"Pony, that could never happen." Soda replied. "I could never love anyone as much as I love my brothers." He said

"You never did answer my question, Soda." I said, somewhat grinning.

"What's that?" He asked, laying back down.

"Do you love her?" I asked.

"Ok, Pony, do you really want to know?" He asked, sitting back up.

"Obviously." I said, sarcastically.

""Ok, yes. I do love Alyssa. I love her a lot, and I told her that today. I'll tell you something Ponyboy, I've never felt this way about anyone else before. Not even Sandy. She just makes me happy. Happier than I've been in awhile. She completes me, and I love that. She's said that she loves me as well, and that makes me so happy. It was the best feeling in the world. I can't wait till you can experience it." He said. Then, he laid down and went to sleep.

I rolled over. "Yeah, me either." I said to the darkness. Then, I fell asleep and dreamt about Cherry.

* * *

**That's that. I'll update soon! Please R&R!**

**BTW: I did get the Lowe and Rob from Rob Lowe. I had the Lowe first, and I realized I needed a name for Alyssa's ex, so I did the first name that came to my head.**

**Jess**


	5. Bursting the Bubble

**Faith is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 5**

**Bursting the Bubble**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any original characters...**

* * *

Soda didn't have to work the next day, so we sat around playing cards in the living room. He beat me almost every single time. Must be all that practicing he's done with Steve.

I heard a knock on the door just before lunch. I was going to get up to get it, but I heard Darry say that he would instead. I heard him walk over to the door and open it.

A few minutes later, I could hear Darry walking towards the room that me and Soda were sitting in, and then I saw him stick his head in the door.

"Hey, Pony. There's someone here to see you." He said.

I put down my cards and walked out towards the front door. I was glad, in a way, to be getting away from the card game. I was being beaten, badly, and it was embarrassing.

I figured that it was probably Two Bit at the door, but as I approached it, I saw that the person standing outside, with their back turned to me, had long, red hair.

My heart skipped a beat. There was only one person I knew that had long, red hair. That was Cherry Valence.

As I got closer, she turned around, and I saw that it was Cherry. I could feel myself starting to smile for no apparent reason, other than being happy to see her. That's what she always did to me. Made me smile without any rhyme or reason. I was glad to see her nonetheless.

"Cherry?" I asked, wondering truthfully, why she was here.

She smiled that soft smile of hers, and reached out to hug me. "Hi Pony. How are you doing?"

I was almost at a loss for words. I had no idea what to say. "I'm fine, I guess. What are you doing here?" I asked, which was all I could manage to get out.

"I just thought it was high time I came to see you. Seeing in which I've practically ignored you all year at school. I am sorry about that by the way, but I've just been so busy, I'm sure you have too." She said, coming inside the door.

"Yeah, yeah, I've been real busy too. I've been doing all kinds of things. It uses up a lot of my time." I said. I wasn't quite sure if that was a lie or not. I had been busy, but I had still had time to think about Cherry. Why I never called her was beyond me. But now, I didn't have to, she was right here.

"Come on in." I said, leading her into the kitchen. I didn't want her to go to the living room, because Soda, and probably Darry were both in there.

We sat down on the couch, and we didn't say anything for a few minutes. The awkward silence really got to me, so finally, I thought of something to say.

"So, how are you?"

She smiled at me. "Oh, I'm fine Ponyboy." She said.

I couldn't think of anything else to say. Well, I knew something I wanted to say, but I definitely wasn't going to say it. I wasn't crazy, and I'm not about to tell her that I'm in love with her. I can just see it. 'Hi Cherry, it's a nice day, and by the way, I want to marry you.' I'm sure that would go real well.

I was lost in my thoughts when she spoke. "Pony, can I ask you something?" She said, turning to face me slightly.

I swallowed. Could she have read my thoughts? Was she going to ask me to marry her? Oh man, I'm way far-gone.

"Uh…sure…yea, go ahead." I said, trying not to sound nervous.

"How old is your brother?" She asked.

"Soda's 17." I answered, not knowing why she could possibly want to know that. Could it be that she liked him? Well, he has a girlfriend, she'd have no chance. I really have to stop talking to myself.

"No, I meant Darry." She replied.

This was even stranger. She couldn't like Darry. Not a chance. Oh, I'm doing it again! I keep talking to myself! Just answer her!

"Darry? He's 21, why?"

Cherry looked almost dreamy. "Really?" She said, sounding some what disappointed.

I was really confused by this time. "Yea…he is."

Cherry was silent for another minute. "Can I tell you something?"

"I guess so." I said, knowing I didn't have much choice in the matter anyway.

"When I first heard about Darry from you last year, he sounded really, really mean. I know you've worked things out since then, but I've always had the mental picture in my head of what he was like. Well, today, when I was standing at your door, and Darry was there, I…well…I thought that he was really handsome, and he seemed really nice. So, basically, what I'm trying to get at is…"

"Why I made him sound so mean?" I asked for her. Knowing that's probably what she wanted to know.

"Is he single?" She asked all of a sudden.

I couldn't move, I couldn't think. My heart dropped down to my knees and I was at a loss for words. Cherry…my Cherry, had a thing for my older brother? This can't be happening. This is just too much.

"Yea, Darry's single. But I'll warn ya, he don't date much. He's kinda secluded that way." I said. That wasn't really a lie. I knew that Darry wasn't much for dating, mainly because he never had any time. But I also knew that if he found the right girl, then he would. But Cherry wasn't the right girl. Cherry was mine, and I was gonna see to it.

Cherry nodded. "Ok, thank Pony. I have to go know, I'm a bit late for something, but it's been really nice talking to you again. We'll have to do it again soon, alright?" She said, standing up from the couch and heading towards the front door.

"Yeah, of course." I replied, trying to sound happy, while my insides were screaming to make her stay.

"Say hi to Darry and Soda for me, ok?" She asked, once we had reached the door.

I nodded. She went out the door. Then she turned back.

"Hey Pony, you see any good sunsets lately?" She asked with a smile.

I smiled back, and this was a genuine smile. "A couple." I said.

She flashed me one more smile, and then left for good. She didn't turn back, although I was hoping she would. I closed the door with a sigh.

The girl of my dreams is in love with my oldest brother. How wrong is that? Maybe if I was a bit older, good looking like Soda, and strong like Darry, she'd look at me. Maybe.

I walked back into the room where Soda was sitting. He wasn't playing cards anymore, because he had no one to play with, and he had no patience when he was playing any of those one-player games. Instead he was propped up on the chair, with his feet on the coffee table, eating.

"Hey Pony. What was that all about?" He asked, taking his feet off the table.

Once he saw the expression on my face, the smile on his vanished into a look of concern.

"Hey, Pony, what's wrong? What happened?" He asked, standing up and coming over to me.

"It was Cherry. She dropped by to say hi." I said, trying not to make eye contact.

"Cherry Valence?" Soda asked.

"Yeah, that's her."

"Well, if she just dropped by to say hi, that can't be the reason you're upset. You look absolutely devastated." Soda replied.

"Ok Soda. You know that Cherry was the first girl I've ever really liked…like that…right?" I said, trying not to sound completely stupid.

"Yea, sure, you talked about her non stop. Steve said I was bad for talking about Alyssa all the time, but you never stopped talking about Cherry there for quite a while. Nearly drove Darry crazy." He said, with a smirk.

"Well…she asked me today…if Darry was single." I said, swallowing.

Soda sat back down on the couch and exhaled a long breath. He rubbed his hand over his forehead before he spoke again.

"Wow. I'm really sorry Pony. That must be rough. I had no idea you cared about her that much. I thought it was just a crush. Isn't Darry a little too old for her though?"

"Can we just not talk about this, please Soda? Can you think of something else to talk about? I don't care, anything really, as long as it has nothing to do with Cherry." I said, choking back tears.

"Like what?" Soda asked.

"I don't care, anything. Just nothing about Cherry. You can talk about Alyssa for all I care, just not Cherry!" I said, trying not to sound mad, although I know I did. I wasn't mad at Soda. I don't know who I was mad at, but I was mad, hurt, confused.

"You're sure you want me to talk about Alyssa? Cause you know I can go on forever." He said, with a smile.

"Yeah, whatever." I said, still not looking up. I had managed to fight back the tears, but I still felt like I wanted to cry.

"Ok, in that case, I have to ask you something. I need your advice." Soda said, leaning back on the couch.

"Yeah, whatever." I said again.

"Ok, I need a place to take her tonight. We're going on a date, and I don't really want to take her to a movie again, because we always do that. I need something unique and exciting. Something she'd never expect. Some place special enough for her. I know you're good with the dreamy romantic stuff, and I'm really not, so I thought you'd be the perfect person to ask." Soda said.

"You could take her to Windrixville. It's a bit of a drive, but it's really nice up there. Go during sunset, it's really romantic." I said, not even thinking about the words that were coming out of my mouth.

"That sounds great, except for one problem."

"What's that?" I asked.

"I don't have a car." Soda replied, looking somewhat let down.

"Ask Darry if you can borrow the truck. You're a relatively good driver, I'm sure Darry will trust you. After all, it's all in the name of romance, right?" I said, managing a small smile.

Soda grinned. " Yeah. It's all romance all right. I suck at being romantic. Well…I'm good at the whole talking romantic thing, but when it comes to dates, I'm completely clueless." He said.

"How in the world will you ever survive when you get married someday? If you can't even think of a simple date?"

"I'll figure that out when the time comes. Don't worry, I don't think I'll be getting married for a while." Soda said, still grinning.

"Anyways, if you want a romantic date, go to where I told you. I guarantee you that she'll love it."

"That's a good idea. Thanks Pony. I'll see if I can't snag the truck for tonight." Soda said.

"Hey, if you don't, you could just hitch a ride on the train. Unless you have a problem with going at three am." I said, smiling.

Soda laughed and left the room, and I say there on the couch.

I was thinking about Darry and Cherry. Then I thought about Soda and Alyssa. The way I saw it, Soda always got the girl, always. Why couldn't I just get the one girl that I loved before I even knew it? Why couldn't I have been strong like Darry, or handsome like Soda? There was nothing special about me. Nothing really made me stand out from any of the other Greasers.

I never got the girl like Soda. I never played hard to get like Darry. I couldn't get numerous blonds like Two Bit, and I wasn't good with cars like Steve. I was just Ponyboy. Plain, ordinary, boring Ponyboy. Darry and Soda's kid brother.

Johnny always understood where I was. He never got into girls either like Soda, Steve and Dally had. He was average like I was. Even though we were the smallest, and basically the youngest ones in the gang, we could've gotten girls if we really tried, because there were two of us. But now, that it's just me, I can't do squat. I was ok with being average when Johnny was around. We may have always been seen as young and innocent, but at that point, I was ok with that. Now that I'm alone, it sucks. I'm alone, I really am. Everyone else has some great quality that they have. But not me, I'm still young and innocent, and as far as I can see, I always will be.

That night, I was still in a bad mood, so I slumped out to the kitchen to eat supper.

I didn't see Soda anywhere, so I guess he had succeeded in borrowing the truck from Darry, and it was just me and him at supper, which was a bit awkward.

I ate supper in silence. It wasn't that I didn't want to talk to Darry, I just didn't really want to talk to anyone.

Darry noticed though. After I had taken a couple bites, he turned to me.

"You're quieter than usual, Pony. Is everything ok?" He asked.

He really did sound like he wanted to know. But I really didn't want to tell him what Cherry had said. I didn't want to encourage anything, and as long as Darry didn't know Cherry liked him, nothing could happen between them.

"Nothing, I'm just tired." I lied.

Darry didn't buy it, but he wisely said nothing. He knew by now, that if something was really bothering me, and he asked me about it, if I gave a stupid answer, that I clearly didn't want to talk about it.

I didn't like ignoring Darry though, so I decided that I needed to start some kind of a conversation.

"So, did you hear about Curly Shepard?" I asked. That was really the only thing that I could think of to talk about that Darry would be really interested in.

Darry looked at me strangely.

"No, I haven't been talking to Tim for ages. Why, what happened?" He asked.

I swallowed. As much as I wanted conversation, I really didn't want to be the one to tell him about that.

"Well…he's dead. Some Soc was pushing him around and he threw a punch. He fell backwards and hit his head on cement. He was killed instantly." I said.

Darry didn't say anything for a few minutes.

"How did you find this out?" He asked.

"Two Bit and me ran into Tim the other day. He told us the whole story. We were both pretty shocked too." I said

"I'm surprised in a way, I guess. But in another way, I'm not. Curly was always one for getting himself into situations like that. I'm also thinking about a rumor I heard the other day, while I was at work." Darry replied.

"What's that?" I asked, taking a bite out of my meat. Rumors weren't uncommon in our part of the town, but they weren't always true either.

"About a certain rumble rematch. Tim Shepard apparently wants to have it in the vacant lot again, and he wants our outfit to help. You up to it? He asked.

"Another rumble?" I asked.

"Kinda to avenge Curly I guess. At least, that's the only reason I can think of that he would want to have one. Two Bit, Steve and Soda are already in." Darry said.

Soda was going to fight. I wonder how Alyssa would react. I really didn't like to fight, but I didn't want to seem like a chicken.

"Yea, I'm in." I replied.

I got up from the table and went to my room. I wasn't tired, and besides I wanted to stay up to wait for Soda to come home. I wanted to talk to him about the rumble.

Another rumble. This could turn out to be very interesting.

* * *

**Ok that wasn't the best chapter I guess. But, the story does get better, especially if you are a fan of Soda...kinda like me...lol.**

**Please R&R!**

**Jess**


	6. Playing Cards and Sleepovers

**Faith is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 6**

**Playing Cards and Sleepovers**

* * *

The next couple of days went by really slow, because nothing out of the ordinary happened. I figured that Soda hadn't told Alyssa that he was planning on fighting, and if he had, she was obviously ok with it, because she seemed just as in love with him as ever.

I really didn't mind Soda and Alyssa being together. To tell you the truth, I think I was just as "in love" with her as Soda was, only in a different way. She was really sweet, and she didn't treat me like Steve did. She actually treated me like I was 15, not a little kid. I was glad that Soda had found someone that completed him so well. All the while, being single and pursuing someone who was completely oblivious to me, and chasing after someone else, it was sometimes hard for me to watch them together.

Soda came home from work one day and had brought Alyssa home with him for supper. I'm guessing that Darry was ok with it, because he didn't seem to mind her being there at all. Quite the opposite, he was actually enjoying her company. Not as much as Soda of course, because the whole night before supper, he never left her side. Darry had to pry him away from her to get him to help set the table.

All during supper, we didn't bring up the rumble at all. But, of course, I made the mistake of opening my big mouth. Alyssa had asked Soda if he was free next Tuesday night. Soda didn't get a chance to answer, before I spoke up.

"Isn't that the night of the…"

Soda kicked me under the table, but Alyssa had already caught on that something was up.

"The night of what?" She asked, eyeing Soda.

"Umm, the night of my…early birthday party." Soda said, trying not to look her straight in the eye. But, Alyssa wasn't stupid.

"Yeah, sure. Soda, come with me for a minute please." She said, standing up from the table, and pulling Soda with her into the living room.

I finished eating, and took my plate over to the sink. I took a little longer than usual, so I could try to hear what they were saying in the next room.

I could see Soda and Alyssa standing in there, and Alyssa had her arms folded, and was looking at him with a look that would make any normal boy cringe.

"A rumble? Soda, are you crazy! You'll get killed." She said.

"I was going to tell you, I really was. I was just waiting for the right time, and clearly this wasn't it. Look, I'm not going to get hurt, or killed. I've done this before. I promise, I'll be alright." Soda was saying.

He rested his hands on his shoulders, and looked longingly into her eyes, as if pleaded with her to be ok with it.

She didn't budge for about a minute, but then, her shoulders relaxed, and she grabbed both his hands.

"I'm sorry Soda. I don't mean to be so up tight about this, I'm just worried about you that's all. I don't want to lose you, I mean it." She said.

"Pony." Darry called to me. "It doesn't take that long to put your dish in the sink. Leave them alone."

I reluctantly went back over to the table and sat down. I really wanted to know what else they were saying, but no sooner had I thought the words, when Soda and Alyssa came walking back into the kitchen, and sat down. They looked calm, and Soda was somewhat smiling. So, I figured everything was cool between them.

After supper, Soda wondered if anyone wanted to play cards with him. I said yes, and to our surprise Alyssa told us to deal her in as well. Darry had to decline because he had some stuff to do.

We sat down, and Soda dealt us all in. We were playing poker, but we weren't betting, because none of us had any money.

I'll tell you something, that girlfriend of Soda's is some kind of poker player. She beat us at almost every hand, and we weren't even taking it easy on her at all. She shrewd too. She's got a great poker face.

After we got tired of being beaten, we stopped playing. Just as we did, we heard this tremendous thunder clap overhead, and saw a lightning flash outside the window. We all jumped. I ran to the window and saw rain streaming down. It was a regular storm.

"Man, that came out of no where." I said, whistling.

"I guess I should get home. Wish me luck that I don't drown before I get there." Alyssa said, standing up and heading towards the door.

Soda ran in front of her, and blocked her off.

"No way. I am not letting you go home in this. You'll die, then I'll die, and that's not something I'd like to experience. So, no, you're staying here tonight." He said.

"Soda, I don't want to inconvenience you guys at all. I'll be fine, really." She said, pulling on the sleeves of her jacket.

I spoke up then. "No, Soda's right. I don't want to have you driving home in this on my conscience all night. You can stay. You can sleep in our parents old room if you want." I said.

"Oh no Pony. I couldn't do that." She said.

"Then I'll sleep in there, and you can sleep on my side of the bed with Soda. That's probably what you want anyway." I said.

Soda knocked me on the back of the head.

"Ouch. That's not what I meant." I said, rubbing my head, and realizing just how wrong my last statement had sounded. Of course, I knew that they would probably do it anyway, but still, it was something that shouldn't be said in public.

Alyssa was smiling, and trying to cover her mouth with her hand, so Soda couldn't see her grinning at this absurd statement. Soda on the other hand was turning redder by the minute. I could feel my own cheeks getting warm as well, and tried to change the subject, but Alyssa spoke up first.

"Well, if it's alright with Darry, I'd like to say. It would probably be better considering the weather. Besides, my sister isn't home tonight, so it'd be really lonely in the apartment all by myself. I guess I'll take your room Pony, if you're really ok with that. I'd just feel more comfortable in there." She said.

"No problem." I said. "It'll be nice sleeping in mom and dad's old room again. I used to do it all the time when was I was little. You'll be more comfortable with Soda anyhow." I smirked. "And warmer." I couldn't resist adding that last little bit in.

Soda shot me a warning look. Then turned towards the kitchen.

"Do you think that we should ask Darry before we settle on anything for sure?"

"Ask me what?" Darry asked, coming in from the kitchen.

"Since it's storming outside, we thought we'd let Alyssa sleep over here, so she doesn't have to drive home." Soda replied, looking kind of skittish.

"And I assume she'll be sleeping where?" Darry asked, crossing his arms across his chest, and looking back and forth between me and Soda.

I decided to answer for Soda. "She'll sleep in my room, and I'll sleep in mom and dad's old room." I said.

"Will you be ok with that Pony? You won't have nightmares or anything?" Darry asked, now focusing all his attention on me.

I was defensive. I wasn't sure if I really wanted Alyssa to know I had nightmares.

"No way. I'll be fine. I haven't had a nightmare for a long time. I'll be ok as long as I know that Alyssa is comfortable." I said.

Alyssa came over and gave me a hug. "Thanks Pony. You dig ok." She said.

I saw Soda grinning behind me.

"You'd better let go." I said. "I think that Soda's starting to get jealous."

She laughed, and went over to where Soda was standing.

"Don't worry, I've got her all night." Soda said, grinning down at her, and taking her hand in his.

Alyssa laced her fingers through Soda's and playfully poked him in the ribs with her free hand.

"Watch it buddy, or you'll be sleeping on the floor." She said, smiling.

Soda leaned down to kiss her. "Goodnight everybody." He said, leading her into the bedroom, and closing the door behind them.

I went to the bathroom and got ready, but realized that I needed my PJ's. I went to the door of the bedroom, and knocked quietly.

"Come in." I heard Alyssa say.

I opened the door and saw that Soda was already in bed, and Alyssa was standing in front of the mirror combing her hair.

"Sorry, I just need to get my pajama's." I said, going over to the dresser and opening it.

As soon as I got them, I walked back over to the door.

"Night guys." I said.

"Pony, can you turn the light off on your way out?" Soda asked.

"Sure." I said, and flicked the switch, closing the door behind me.

I went into mom and dad's room. I was really dark, and the storm raging outside didn't help me get to sleep. The room smelled like no one had lived in there for years and years.

I got dressed, and climbed into bed.

It wasn't until I had turned off the light that I realized how dark the room really was. I tried to go to sleep, but I couldn't. I almost wished I was back in my own bed with Soda's arm around me.

I don't know how long I was laying there staring up into the blackness of the room, but I eventually got up and walked into my room.

When I opened the door, and bit of light shone through. I saw Soda's arm laying across Alyssa's shoulder. Boy, Darry would be furious if he ever saw that.

I walked over to Soda's side of the bed, and kneeled down so I was almost eye level to him. I tapped him softly on the arm until he woke up.

He rolled over and looked at me groggily.

"What's up Pony?" He asked.

"I can't sleep." I said, shaking due to the cold.

"Listen. Go back in there, and think of the best memory you have of mom and dad. I guarantee it will work. I promise. Now go to sleep. I'm tired." He said, rolling back over.

I stood up and walked back into mom and dad's room. It didn't seem as dark when I laid back down, and the storm had subsided. I did what Soda had told me and gathered my best memory of my parents. I was asleep in about 10 minutes. I slept better than I had in a long time too.

* * *

**Please R&R!**

**Jess**


	7. Talkin' Bout Plans

**Faith is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 7**

**Talkin' Bout Plans**

* * *

I woke up really early the next morning, and went into the kitchen expecting to find it empty. Instead, I saw Alyssa in there already sitting at the table eating breakfast. 

"Where's everybody else?" I asked.

"Darry's already gone I think. Soda's still asleep. I don't normally wake up this early, but I couldn't get back to sleep. Darn birds kept me awake." She said, winking at me.

"Well, how'd you sleep during the night?" I asked, trying not to make eye contact. I figure she knew why I was asking, and I knew that if I looked at her, I'd turn a wicked shade of red.

She didn't answer me for a minute, but when I sat down at the table with my breakfast, she put her fork down and looked over at me.

"Pony, if I tell you something, will you swear to keep it private?" She asked, solemnly.

I swallowed a spoonful of cereal. "Sure, what's up?"

"Something…interesting happened last night. I've never really experienced it with any other guy I've been with before, but this was different." She said.

The cereal went dry in my mouth as my mind raced with all the possibilities of what she could have meant.

"Well…what exactly…happened? It wasn't anything like…that…was it?" I asked, trying to find the write words.

Alyssa thought about my jumbled sentence, before a sly grin spread across her face.

"Don't worry Pony, I know what you're thinking, and no, it's nothing like…that." She replied. "It's something completely romantic, not dirty."

I took a breath outward, and settled back into my chair.

"Ok, then what was it?" I asked, now genuinely interested. I really hadn't wanted to know anything about their…personal life. As much as I'm a curious person, there are just some things you can not pry into.

"Well…it's kind of hard to explain, because I really don't fully understand it myself, but I'll try my best. Last night, when I was lying there in bed with Soda and we were just talking about stuff, everything about the moment just felt right. The atmosphere felt right, the person felt right, the whole thing just felt…almost natural to me. Like we were married or something. Like we belonged together in that moment. I was weird, but it wasn't awkward. I don't know if that makes any sense to you at all, but I really don't know how else to explain it." She said.

"Maybe it was your hearts way of telling you that he's the one you're supposed to be with?" I said, trying to sound really smart.

Alyssa stood up and ruffled my hair. "You're an okay kid, Ponyboy. I'm gonna go shower before Soda gets up." She said, and left the kitchen.

I finished eating my breakfast and took my dishes over to the sink to wash them. I didn't hear Soda come in the kitchen, and I realized he was there when he came up behind me and jumped up using my shoulders as a launching pad.

"Jeeze Soda, you think you could make any more noise?" I asked, breathing heavily.

"I dunno. I could try if you want." Soda replied, flashing me a grin.

"No, that's quiet alright thanks." I said, turning back to the dishes. "Your girlfriend's in the shower in case you were wondering."

"I kind of figured. I woke up and she wasn't there. I was praying she was out here and that I hadn't just imagined the whole thing. But, the side of the bed still smelled like her, so it put my mind at ease." Soda said, rooting through the cupboards for something to munch on.

"So…uh, Alyssa told me about last night." I said, trying to make it sound like some deep, dark secret. I knew that Alyssa had told me not to talk about what she said, but I didn't think that Soda counted.

Soda cocked an eyebrow. "What about last night?" He asked, almost defensively, as if he really was hiding something. I wondered if I should just drop the subject all together, because maybe there was some stuff going on that I didn't know about, or need to know about.

"Well, she just told me what it was like to sleep next to you. It was all good stuff, I swear." I said.

Soda grinned. "Oh…that. She told you about that did she?" He asked.

I breathed a sigh of relief. I wasn't in trouble.

He sat down next to me and looked at me across the table.

"I'll tell you Pony, it was amazing. I have never in my life felt anything like it before. Everything felt perfect, like everything was supposed to be there. It's almost like it was my heart's way of telling me…"

"That she's the one?" I asked, taking a drink of chocolate milk.

Soda nodded. "Exactly. Wow, you're pretty smart for a fifteen-year-old. How do you know so much about this anyway?"

"Just lucky I guess." I replied, shrugging. "So, what did you think of that feeling, Soda?" I asked.

"It was great Pony, really great. I mean, I knew that I was in love with her and everything, but this was like…extreme attraction…more so than usual, which is weird…well…not weird…but…you know what I mean…" He stammered.

"Yeah, I get it." I replied. I didn't know if I really did get it or not, but it sounded good to me.

"Pony, I gotta talk to you about something." Soda said.

Boy, I think I'm turning into everyone's diary or something.

"What's up?" I asked.

"I have a plan for my birthday. I'm gonna do something cool that, hopefully, no one with expect." Soda said.

"Whatever could that be? Are you planning on jumping out of your cake, or hiding all your presents or something?" I asked.

"I'm gonna ask Alyssa to marry me." He said, solemnly.

I was so surprised, I almost spit out my milk.

"What!" I exclaimed.

"Yup, I really think that I should. I mean, we've known each other since grade school, and we dated until junior high. We've both agreed that we're in love with each other, so it would make sense that I would marry her. Why prolong something that's bound to happen eventually anyway?" He said, sounding deadly serious.

"But…but…" I stammered.

"Spit it out, Pony." Soda said, motioning for me to continue.

"But…you're only going to be 18!" I said. "Don't you think you're both a little young to be getting married?"

Soda smiled at me. "Oh, we wouldn't be getting married for awhile. She won't be 18 until August, and then we'll have to save up some money, and do a lot of planning. It probably wouldn't happen till next year or something like that." He said.

I was somewhat relieved, and I tried to show him that, but I really wasn't.

"Did you talk to Darry about it yet?" I asked.

"Not yet. I really didn't think about it that much until last night. Up until then the thought was kind of just floating around in the back of my mind. I'll tell Darry eventually." Soda replied.

"Okay, just make sure it's not the same time you tell her." I said, grinning at him.

I stood up and took Soda's dishes over to the sink for him. I may as well clean up for him, because he never does it himself. I'm not professing to be any kind of neat freak, but compared to Sodapop, I'm like the master of cleaning.

I thought about everything that had just happened in the last week. I thought about the rumble which was only four days away. Soda was going to get married, and what was even more amazing was Two Bit and Steve hadn't showed up at my house yet today! What next! Would Cherry Valence randomly appear on my doorstep and profess her love to me?

As soon as I thought those words, I heard a knock on the door. My heart started pounding. There was no way that it could be her, no way. It just wasn't that possible, because I simply was not that lucky.

I walked over to the door, and half hoped to see a wave of red hair as I opened it. But of course, I knew I wasn't lucky, because instead of Cherry, Steve and Two Bit waltzed in the door. I should've known.

"Hey Pony, is Soda around?" Steve asked, not even waiting for me to invite them in. Of course, they never did that.

"Yeah, he's here." I said, then I called to Soda. " Hey Soda! Those other people that live here are back again. Should I kick them out?"

"Nah! Let em stay! They probably have nothing better to do anyway." Soda said.

"Thanks buddy." Steve replied, sitting down at the kitchen table.

"Hey Soda. We heard you had a young lady visitor last night." Two Bit said.

Soda grinned. "Yup, but don't worry, it was only my girlfriend. I wasn't cheating or anything." He said.

"Well, I didn't figure. I'd be surprised if you let each other out of your site for longer than 10 minutes. You guys are nuts!" Steve said.

"It was only because it was storming. It's not like we're planning on making a habit out of it or anything." Soda replied.

I coughed loudly from the other side of the room, and I saw Soda shoot me a look. I shut up.

"Where is the love of your life anyway?" Two Bit asked.

"She's just in the shower." Soda replied.

"And you're out here…why?" Steve asked, grinning.

"Shut up man, that's not funny" Soda said, even though he was grinning too.

"I heard that too." Alyssa's voice came from the doorway.

"Good morning baby." Soda said, going over to her, and giving her a kiss, just to gross out the rest of us.

"Alright, alright. We get the message man. I'll stop making fun of you, but please, cut the lip locking, please." Steve said, covering his face with his hands.

Soda grinned, and went over to Steve to high five him.

"Don't worry. We won't do it anymore…at least not around you." He said.

Two Bit and Steve left, and Soda went back over to Alyssa.

"That'll teach them!" He said, kissing her for real this time.

I left them alone and went into the living room to sit on the couch.

I started to think about everything again. Mostly the rumble was up front in my mind.

I knew I would end up most likely end up getting clobbered, but I guess that was okay. It was worth it. I thought of all the reasons why we all fought.

Darry fought so he could show off his muscles. He was the Goliath of our group. If I had muscles to show off I figured I may have the same reason.

Soda fought for fun. He always needed to be doing something exciting. Of course, after he married Alyssa, maybe she could slow him done.

Steve fought for glory. He liked the feeling of winning. I like winning, don't get me wrong, but I'd rather be in one piece in the end.

Two Bit fought because everyone else did. He would probably follow us all of a bridge if he thought it was the thing to do.

I still didn't really have a reason why I fought. But I had four days to figure it out. So I'd better start thinking fast.

* * *

**Please R&R!**

**Jess**


	8. Let's Get Ready To Rumble!

**Faith is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 8**

**Let's Get Ready To Rumble!**

* * *

Tuesday night rolled around a lot faster than I think any of us expected it to. I wasn't prepared at all for the rumble and my stomach was in knots the whole day. I really had no choice in the matter however, because I already had told Darry that I was going, and I couldn't back out now.

I realized that Alyssa had made Soda a deal. He was allowed to fight on one condition : She was allowed to stay at our place for the night and wait up for us. Just so she could patch us up and all those other things women do when men get beat up. I guess since Soda's birthday was the next day, it was perfect timing.

I wondered if Soda had even thought about buying her an engagement ring, or if he was just going to wing it. I didn't think that he had enough extra money for something like that, but with Soda, you never know. He always has something up his sleeve that you never expect.

All through the day, I noticed that Soda was staying extra close to Alyssa. He never seemed to leave her side, and I also noticed that he was really jumpy. At first I thought it was because of a rumble, but I've never known Soda to get nervous about fighting. Soon, I figured out it was because he was planning on proposing. Soda may be a hopeless romantic, but he still got nervous about stuff like that. Not that I blamed him, I would've been nervous too.

The night came quickly, and as time rolled on, I got more and more butterflies in my stomach. I wasn't one for violence, but even I wasn't that afraid of fighting.

I decided to go into my room and lay down for awhile. I thought it may make me feel better. I guess I must have drifted off to sleep because the next thing I knew Darry was shaking me awake.

"Pony, ten minutes until we leave. You still wanna come?" He asked.

"Absolutely." I said, and rolled out of bed.

I changed my clothes in a hurry, and wandered out into the living room.

Two Bit, Steve and Soda were all waiting in the living room, and all three of them looked like they were ready to go. Steve was jumping up and down and Soda couldn't sit still without shuffling his feet around. Two Bit was sitting on the very edge of the chair, like at any moment, he was ready to jump.

"Ok, listen up guys." Darry said. "This is going to be a lot tougher fight than the last one. This time, the Socs want revenge, and they'll do whatever they can to get it. They're gonna be a lot tougher, a lot colder, a lot meaner. They're not going to show you any mercy, so don't show them any."

"Darry man, you make it sound like we're going to war or something." Steve said.

"We may as well be. They want to get even, but so do we." Darry said.

"I thought we beat them last time though." Soda asked.

"Well…we did… but this time we're getting even because of what happened to Curly."

I sat there, and finally figured it out. Last time, we fought for Johnny. This time, we were going to fight for Curly. We were always fighting for someone. It made sense.

"Are you guys ready?" Steve yelled.

"Sure as heck are. We're going to kick them clear to Ohio." Two Bit said.

We all shouted, and I could see Alyssa sitting there beside Soda, her arms crossed, not saying a word. The look on her face was not one of happiness. She looked more nervous than any of us. Partially, I think it was because in the back of her mind, she was fearing that Soda wouldn't come back home. She knew it wouldn't happen, but there's always that one possibility that plagues the back of your mind.

I knew that Soda was aware of how afraid she was, and that's part of the reason he was staying extra close to her all day.

In about five minutes, we were all standing by the door, grabbing our shoes, and walking around in circles, filled with a mix between excitement and anticipation.

Just before we left, Alyssa came over to where Soda was standing. She whispered something in his ear, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. She wasn't crying, nor did she look near tears, but the expression on her face gave away her feelings.

Soda leaned over to her, and stroked her cheek, and kissed her. He smiled a little at her, and she forced a smile as well. He gave her one last quick kiss, and headed towards the door.

We started walking down the street towards the vacant lot. The whole mood of the group this time was different than the last. We were all quiet, because in all honesty, we really didn't know what to expect out of this. I looked back at Soda, and I knew that his mind wasn't on the rumble at all. All he was thinking about was Alyssa. He almost looked like he felt guilty for being here and leaving her alone to worry.

We reached the lot and saw Tim Shepard and his crew waiting for us. They looked as bouncy as we felt. There was another huge bonfire in the middle of the lot, and they were feeding it with whatever they could find.

I didn't know if I expected Tim to look any less tough than he usually did, considering that he had just lost his little brother, but I guess it either didn't affect him that much, or he was really good at hiding it. I hoped it was the second one, because I don't know how anyone could not care about losing someone in their family.

I looked up at the sky. It was black and foreboding, just like my thoughts about this whole thing. I didn't know how we were going to win this fight, with me, a little weak scaredy cat, and Soda, not even paying attention to what was happening. My only hope was that Steve and Darry were feeling strong, which I knew they always were.

It wasn't that I was scared, cause I wasn't…much. It was more a feeling of anger, mixed with revenge, mixed with, I don't know what. I was mad at the Socs for killing Curly, but I was also angry at Curly for getting caught up in the whole thing in the first place. But, it's not good to speak bad of the dead, so I shut my thoughts out, and concentrated on not getting my head kicked in.

We waited with Tim and his gang for almost ten minutes, until we saw the Socs pull up with their Mustang headlights piercing the darkness not occupied by the blaze of the fire, and their loud, honking horns putting an end to the eerie silence I had been listening to. Leave it to them to be late for their own rumble. As they got out of the car, I knew that half of them were drunk, and the other half were even more drunk. I heard their forced laughter, as if everything said by someone was the world's greatest joke.

As they approached, I got this strange feeling in the pit of my stomach. I felt like I had been here before, which was blatantly obvious. But, suddenly, something came over me that made me feel like this was one huge mistake on our part for being here at all. I figured that this wasn't going to be some pleasant little grudge match. I mean, what if the Socs were so keen on revenge, that they had broken the rules of the rumble, and brought heaters with them or something? I realized that we could all be dead in about two minutes flat, and I started wishing that I was home with Alyssa. Screw being brave. I'd rather be alive.

Once all the Socs were standing in front of us, the silence started to creep back over the lot as we stared at each other, face to face, with looks of anger, and loathing that would make any normal person run to the nearest underground shelter.

One tall Soc stepped out from behind another. I recognized him right away. It was Paul. I saw Darry's eyes flash, and I knew it was because he wanted nothing better than to rip Paul's eyes out of his sockets. The worst part was, I could see even in Paul's glazed over eyes, that he wanted the exact same thing.

I was really hoping someone would say something. This silence was creeping me out. Normally, I would have welcomed any form of silence, but I wasn't trying to read or write now, so I really wanted noise.

It seemed like Paul and Darry stared each other down for hours, but finally Darry spoke.

"Hello again. Long time no see." He said, not breaking eye contact.

Not long enough, I was thinking, but I kept my mouth shut.

"Ah, Darrel, I see you've brought your little…Greasers with you again." Paul said, his eyes staring each one of us down.

I felt Steve move behind me, and Two Bit's eyes blazed with fire beside me. Soda didn't move, just kept the tough look on his face. I knew perfectly well, that he was thinking about Alyssa, and absolutely nothing else. It was like he was glued to the spot he was standing, relying only on the tough look on his face. But his eye would've given him away. Usually, when he tries to look tough, his eyes will blaze, but now, they were solemn, and almost concerned, and filled with compassion. I knew he wasn't feeling compassionate about the Socs.

Darry didn't answer, he just nodded.

"I supposed I'll take you again, Greaser." Paul said, with a look of disdain.

I half expected Dally to jump out from behind the garbage can and help us out, but I knew he wouldn't and I knew we were on our own.

Before I knew what was happening, the first punch had been made. No heaters or knives were brought out to my relief, but I got punched in about five seconds.

I got up and shook it off. I went after the smallest Soc I could find, which wasn't easy, cause to me, they were all huge, towering giants, which I had no chance of defeating. My goal was to basically weaken them, so the other's wouldn't have too hard of a time once I was no longer useful to them.

Once I had found my target, I caught him off guard, and jumped him, kicking and punching until my legs and arms were numb. It didn't last long, however. He threw me off of him in about a minute.

I caugh glances of Soda, Steve and Two Bit fighting around me. Steve looked a little beat up, but he wasn't backing down at all. He currently had a Soc's head under his arm and was hitting the living daylights out of him.

Two Bit was punching two guys at one time, and not only did he look like he was enjoying it, he looked like he was winning.

Soda, on the other hand was punching, kicking, and whacking everything in sight. I was amazed he didn't accidentally get one of us at the rate he was going. I figured he just wanted to get this thing over with, and get home to his girlfriend as soon as possible. Maybe not because he missed her, but maybe because he didn't want her to have any reason to worry about him.

I couldn't find Darry, but I didn't get a chance to look for him, because I got whacked in the face. I didn't know who hit me. It could've been someone on our gang, because I was just sitting there on the ground, and they were passing by real fast not paying attention.

I stood up immediately, and found someone else to punch. He was tough, but I got him down, which amazed me. I ran on to the next person, and then the next, and the next. I was a non stop, punching machine.

Just when I thought I couldn't be stopped, some guy knocked me down so hard, I got the wind kicked out of me. I grabbed his foot, and dragged him down with me.

I scarcely heard Soda say "Pony, you okay?"

"Fine!" I shouted back, and kept on punching.

I found a few more people to punch, and one of the last people I found was huge. I knew I shouldn't have gone after him, but at that point, I was so pumped with adrenaline that I couldn't help myself. No sooner had I thrown a punch his way, that he threw about ten at me. Needless to say, I went down, and I think I blacked out for about five minutes, because the next thing I knew, Soda was kneeling beside me, and I could no longer hear many people.

"What…happened?" I said, opening my eyes, and squinting up at him.

"We beat them. Really bad too. They didn't know what hit them. I saw you go down, Pony. What in the world were you thinking throwing a punch at someone twice your size?" Soda asked me.

"I dunno. Just trying to be the hero I guess." I said, starting to sit up. My head was pounding, but other than that, I thought I was okay.

I figured out pretty quick that I had at least twisted my ankle, because I could barely walk on it.

Darry walked over to help me.

"How're you feeling?" He asked.

"Not bad." I lied. I didn't want to let on how much my head hurt, because right now, I felt like one of the toughest guys there, and I didn't want to spoil that.

"We'd better be getting home. Alyssa can patch us up when we get there." Soda said, starting to walk towards the house.

Two Bit and Steve said goodbye, and went their separate ways, and the three of us started for home.

Soda walked really fast, and I figured he was really anxious to get home to Alyssa.

I just took my time. Firstly, because my ankle hurt too much to walk fast, and secondly, because I didn't want to spoil the moment of glory. As I looked back at the lot, I felt like I was staring at the remains of a battlefield. Luckily for us, there were no left over bodies.

* * *

**Man, I haven't updated this story for a long time. Oh well, one of my New Years Resolutions is to update all my stories more. Please R&R**

**Jess**

**P.S HAPPY NEW YEAR!**


	9. Girl Talk, Boy Talk

**Faith Is Spelled R.I.S.K**

**Chapter 9**

**Girl Talk, Boy Talk**

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I don't think that any of us really realized what time it was, and when we stepped in the door of our house I was really surprised when I saw the clock read just after midnight.

Alyssa was sitting on the couch, and as soon as she heard the door open, she shot up and ran over to us. She quickly hugged me and Darry, and the literally flew into Soda's arms. He didn't object however, and hugged her tighter than I'd ever seen any one hug. I was amazed that she could ever breathe, but she soon dug her face out of his shoulder, and kissed him hard.

I didn't really want to disturb them, so I walked out into the kitchen with Darry to examine myself. When I looked in the mirror, I almost screamed, because I didn't think I was really looking at me. I looked like a train wreck. My hair was all messed up and muddy. My clothes were torn in some places, and my face was covered in scrapes.

I think Darry noticed my reaction, because he came over to where I was standing.

"You've looked worse, believe me." He said.

"I don't want to know." I replied, turning away.

I went back into the living room, this time with a wet towel I had gotten from the bathroom. Soda and Alyssa were separated by this point, and were sitting on the couch talking. Well, I guess I shouldn't say they were really separated, because that rarely happens, but it was close enough.

"How're you feeling, Ponyboy?" Alyssa asked me.

"All right, I guess. My ankle is a little sore, but I'm okay." I replied, wiping my face a little.

Soda stood up and went into the bathroom. He returned a few minutes later, with his shirt off, and a towel in his hands. He had the same idea that I had, and was wiping his face off.

Alyssa was staring at him intently, although I'm sure she didn't want me to know that.

"I just noticed that my neck is really sore." Soda said. "You wanna come have a look at it?" He asked, practically inviting her to touch him.

She blushed a little, but didn't refuse at all. She went over to him, and began rubbing his neck. I was trying so hard not to look, but it was just so funny.

I left again, because at that point, Soda was taking her hands and pulling them down over his chest. It was really wrong, but I'm sure she was enjoying it.

"What's going on in there?" Darry asked, motioning towards the living room.

I took one more look back in. "You really don't want to know." I said, half laughing to myself.

Darry rolled his eyes. "No, probably not, but if I don't want to know, that usually means they're doing something they shouldn't."

"Have they ever done anything bad?" I asked.

"No…not yet." Darry replied.

"Say no more. I don't want to know." I said, putting my hands up.

I walked into the living room when I thought it was safe, and sat down on the couch.

"We're going to bed." Soda said. "You staying up?"

"I don't know. I'm kind of tired, but I don't know if I'd be able to sleep." I said.

"Well, don't stay up too late." Alyssa said, smiling.

"I won't…mother." I joked.

Alyssa winked at me, and pushed Soda into the bedroom.

"Goodnight." She said, and closed the door.

I didn't stay up much later, because Darry came in and sent me to bed. I went to the bathroom, and took the quickest shower in history. I realized that I really was tired by the time I got to the bedroom. I jumped into the bed, and closed my eyes. I was asleep right away.

Suddenly, I heard a scream. It wasn't very loud, but it was a scream none the less. I shot up, and looked around into the blackness that surrounded me.

I couldn't figure out where the scream had came from, but I couldn't hear any movement out side, so I finally figured out that it was me that it was me that screamed.

I suddenly remembered that I was dreaming. I remembered that I was dreaming about mom and dad again. We were in a car, and suddenly, there was a terrible crash. Then, I heard the scream. I guess I was the one screaming.

I tried to get back to sleep but it was no use. I was too shook up, and scared. I didn't want to cry, but I was almost in tears.

I decided that I would go wake Soda and get him to help me. I didn't know how he would do it, but anything was better than sitting here in bed waiting for sleep to consume me again.

I snuck out of the bedroom, and walked down the dark hallway. I reached Soda's room, and quietly pushed open the door.

The room was completely dark, and I couldn't see anything in detail, except for an outline of the bed and the desk, and two figures in the bed.

I walked over blindly to the side of the bed that Soda slept on, and I could soon make out features of him and Alyssa. Soda had one arm over her and the other arm under her. Her head was resting on his shoulder.

I got down on my knees, and was about to tap Soda's arm, when I heard a whisper come from the other side of the bed.

"Ponyboy? Are you okay?" Alyssa's voice asked.

"No. I had a nightmare, and I can't get back to sleep." I replied, trying my hardest to keep my sobs contained. By this time, I was so shook up however, that it was pretty much no use.

"Pony, let's go out and talk." Alyssa said, getting herself out from under Soda's arm, and leading me out into the living room.

It was pretty dark, but I could see more out there, than I could see in any of the bedrooms. We sat down on the couch and she turned to face me.

She had a blue blanket wrapped around her shoulders, and she had slippers on her feet.

"Okay Pony, tell me about this nightmare." She said softly.

"It was about…my…" I started, but then I began to sob. Alyssa put her hand on my shoulder to calm me down.

"It's all right, just breathe. Take some breaths, it's okay." She said.

"I was dreaming about my parents, and about the car crash. I was in the car, and I saw the train come…" I said, through sobs.

"Have you ever dreamt about that before?" Alyssa asked.

"Yeah. I used to dream about it all the time, which is why I slept with Soda. I thought I was over it, because I was doing real good, but I guess they're coming back again." I said.

"You know what Pony? I had the same problem you do, and sometimes I still do." Alyssa said.

"What are you talking about? Your dad's alive." I said.

"Yes, but my mother isn't. She died when I was 4." Alyssa replied.

"But you were so young when she died, how would you even remember?" I asked, wiping my eyes.

"Oh, I remember very well. I don't remember the actual day she died, but I remember when I asked my dad where my mom was. He told me that she was never coming back. I didn't really know what he was talking about, until I was about 7. He told me that she died, and that's why she hadn't come home that night. She was in a car crash like your parents were. My sister, Amber was with her. Amber got out fine, but she's never been the same since." Alyssa said, staring off into the distance.

For the next half an hour or so, I found myself opening up more and more to Alyssa. We shared stories about our childhood's, and talked about all the emotional things we had both gone through. She told me about her dad's new wife, whom she hated. She told me about her new step brother, who treated her like mud when she was ten. I told her about Johnny and Dally, and how hard it had been when Johnny killed the Soc and we had to hide in the church.

By the time I had calmed down, I felt like we had really bonded, and how she wouldn't make such a bad sister-in-law at all. I was actually looking forward to the day her and Soda would get married, that is, if she said yes when he asked her.

Alyssa was constantly listening to my every word, and she seemed really intent on taking it all in. She didn't act like a school councilor, but more like a friend, or a sister.

"I'll tell you something else Ponyboy. The reason I was so intent on sleeping with Soda, was because I did have the same problems that you did. I would have nightmares about my mother's death, even though I wasn't there, or know all the details. I always needed someone to have their arms around me at night. The first night that I slept here, I had another one of those dreams, and I woke up in the middle of the night. Soda got up with me and held me until I fell asleep." Alyssa said.

"Thanks for listening to me tonight. No one else has really ever done that as much as you, except for Johnnycake, and Soda." I said.

"I don't mind doing it. It actually makes me feel better too. I was like you, I never really had that many people to talk to about my problems, or my dreams. It's nice to have a real kind of family now to share with." Alyssa replied.

A real kind of family. I was glad that she thought that we were like her family. That meant that she'd probably be around a long time.

"You think you can go back to bed now?" She asked.

"I can if you can." I replied.

"I think I'll be all right. I'll always have Soda." She said.

"Hey, you think you're ever going to get married to him?" I asked, just out of my own curiosity.

"Me and Soda?" She asked.

"Yeah. You think you'd ever marry him?"

"I don't know Pony. I guess it's a possibility, but we're still both so young." Alyssa said.

"If he asked you, would you say yes?" I asked, knowing I was probably saying too much.

"I don't know. I guess I'll have to see what happens? Why are you so curious?"

I shrugged, trying to think up an excuse.

"Figure it would just be nice to have a sister around, and I'd really like it if it was you." I said, smiling at her.

"Thanks Pony. You're pretty cool." She said, and went back to her bedroom.

"Hey Alyssa. You really love him don't you?" I asked, right before she went into the bedroom.

"I really do Pony. Why?"

"Because he really loves you too." I replied, smiling at her again.

She looked at me and smiled, then she went into the bedroom, and closed the door.

I went back into mom and dad's room, and climbed back into the bed.

I figured I could get back to sleep really quick if I tried. I thought about the conversation me and Alyssa had, and I was very happy.

I closed my eyes, and fell asleep almost instantly. I slept real good for the rest of the night, for the first time in a long time.

* * *

**Wow, I'm horrible at updating. Sorry, I've had exams lately, and haven't had a lot of time, but hopefully, I'll update more. Hope you like it! Please R&R!**

**Jess**


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